Le Grand Journal

I have been lamenting to my husband over the past few days about the fact that I should have bought some of the Stella McCartney for Gap Kids clothes I wrote about here for myself. It’s not like I haven’t done it before. When I lived in London I would regularly trawl the kid’s sale items for XXXL items for myself. And now here I see France’s first lady has beaten me to the punch by managing to fit her statuesque 5’9” frame into their clothes. Great minds think alike? Designer duds at a bargain? All I know is that I’m kicking myself.

All everyone seems to be talking about today is Black Friday which is apparently the biggest sale day in the US (like the Boxing Day sales in the UK). Traditionally people line up from early in the morning to be the first through the doors and there are game plans and strategies about hitting the shops and even apps for your iPhone to help plan your lines of attack. I will be checking out the deals online from the comfort of my home and today’s New York Times agrees with me. They suggest that retailers will only have in-store deals on lower-end products like outdated gadgets and on holiday and seasonal item. If you want a true bargain you should consider shopping online for the best deals on higher-priced items. 

We’ll see whether tomorrow manages to make a dent in the recession.

I had been waiting and anticipating the launch of this high street collaboration since June when I first tweeted about it. At the time while I was happy about it, I knew my wallet would take a serious hit. The line was released in stores and online on November 2 and I was in the e-shop that morning. 

Stella did not disappoint. I was worried because I had read an article where she mad mentioned wanting to design for her sons, so I thought it would be boy-heavy. In the end, she did not disappoint and there were lots of lovely things for girls too, as well as careful use of non-gender specific colours like grey, chartreuse and white. The colour palette is soft, but modern with lots of designer touches which keep the clothes from looking plain or boring without being too cutesy like a lot of children’s clothes. 

I kept checking back every few days or so and, as expected, many sizes and pieces sold out in days. Pretty impressive considering we're in the middle of a recession and the prices were a little higher than you would normally pay for GapKids and babyGap.

Image: Unknown

I thought she was the best of the Twi-bunch at the movie’s launch on Monday (save for the one ashy knee) but surprisingly she didn’t get much coverage in the post-red carpet fashion reports.

Image: Unkown

Lots of posts about shoes at the moment; some good and some bad. 

I could not believe it when I saw a picture of these shoes from Alexander McQueen’s Spring/Summer 2010 line. Dubbed the "Armadillos” and made of python, they measure an otherworldly 12 inches tall. They’re getting an awful lot of press but I think for all the wrong reasons. 

When I see fashion like this (and there are a few others I could name who fall into this category) I am convinced that some designers are misogynists with a warped sense of humour. I’m not too impressed with the vacuous women who rush out to purchase these things in a vain attempt to prove how fashionable they are.

Photo: Mykromag

I came across these gorgeous 6 inch, spiked patent heels by Louise Goldin for Top Shop the other day. High Street/designer collaborations seem to be the way to go in the recession. Glad to see good design is not being compromised.

With the anticipated coming of colder weather (though it has yet to make an appearance here) I have started updating my winter wardrobe. One of my purchases included what appeared to be a cozy cashmere scarf striped taupe and black (see above left in photo). Only when the item arrived did I realize the scarf was in fact a single loop without open ends as I am used to. I had never come across this before but thought it was a cool and different perspective on the scarf. The online retailer I bought it from describes it and other similar items as an “infinity scarf” which also has a nice ring to it.

It would appear however that this item is neither unique nor cool having just been re-branded by ever-savvy US marketing men. Step forward the “snood” as it is known in the UK (a version pictured in pink on the right of the photo), a woolen tube which, according to the Guardian newspaper’s fashion statement, is the “love child of the scarf and the hood and sits snugly around the neck, keeping out stray autumnal chills”. The snood is apparently part of the on-going 80s redux that is happening at the moment and is being brought back to us by everyone from Burberry to Michael Kors. 

Makes it all a little less chic, doesn’t it? I know which name I prefer.